Sessions Held Daily 1 -2:30 p.m. CST
Sign Up Below for the Meeting Invite/Link!
Sign Up Below for the Meeting Invite/Link!
Montessori School Leaders' Virtual Working Sessions:
- Facing into challenges together is efficient, effective, and FUN! Together we can weather the financial, staffing, and service challenges of full, partial, intermittent, and/or long-term closures and unique service models. 2020 raised needs for care and support of families that may demand unique models to viably meet them, especially while attending to teacher's health and well being. As a cross-school leadership team...We've got this!
Who's invited?
This space is open to all Montessori School Leaders! There are participants from schools in the metro area and greater Minnesota, as well as outside of Minnesota. Schools that are funded publicly and privately. Schools that are structured as non-profits, LLCs, S-Corps. You are welcome to share this invitation with other Montessori school leaders, no matter where they are located, or how they are funded, structured, or governed. These inform aspects of the job, but not our connection to one another in it.
What happens each day?
We check in on one another. We gain feedback on a topic of interest. We share relevant headlines. We swap resources.
We engage collaboratively on work with outcomes we all need and on work with outcomes that an individual leader needs at the time. We may rework a budget, test-run a survey, explore a new tech-tool, or brainstorm a tricky board, parent, or staff matter.
We benchmark with colleagues across schools daily...for example: "When are you opening enrollment?" "How did your bank handle your PPP forgiveness?", "What did you budget for X next year?", "How are you staffing X, right now?" We lean into the toughest, most sensitive challenges, when they arise.
Every Montessori school leader is encouraged to bring any topics that are forward for them, about which they would value empathy/feedback/shared experience/knowledge-sharing. Together, we make sure everyone is cared for and no one misses governor's updates, deadlines for new funding sources, and changes to guidelines, etc. Our collective brain is more effective than our own all alone!
We engage collaboratively on work with outcomes we all need and on work with outcomes that an individual leader needs at the time. We may rework a budget, test-run a survey, explore a new tech-tool, or brainstorm a tricky board, parent, or staff matter.
We benchmark with colleagues across schools daily...for example: "When are you opening enrollment?" "How did your bank handle your PPP forgiveness?", "What did you budget for X next year?", "How are you staffing X, right now?" We lean into the toughest, most sensitive challenges, when they arise.
Every Montessori school leader is encouraged to bring any topics that are forward for them, about which they would value empathy/feedback/shared experience/knowledge-sharing. Together, we make sure everyone is cared for and no one misses governor's updates, deadlines for new funding sources, and changes to guidelines, etc. Our collective brain is more effective than our own all alone!
Is it uncomfortable?
Remarkably...not! Feel free to come observe before you engage. Much like our environments serving children...the experience is ordered, you choose when/what to engage and it's driven by interest, peer-learning is centered, the learning is in context, our individual freedom is compassionately boundaried by group norms, collaboration is conducive to exponential learning, exemplary grace and courtesy have become inherent by diligent practice.
We share knowledge, experiences, tools, resources, templates, and most importantly, we share heart. We laugh, we cry, and (very occasionally) curse in outrage. We play games, tell stories, explore our strengths, celebrate, acknowledge greatness, and (occasionally) place fun-filled bets.
We never judge, often laugh till we can't breath, and always love one another while holding ourselves compassionately accountable to self-care as the pathway to functioning, courage over comfort as a transformative practice, pivoting from characteristics of white supremacy culture as an imperative, and rooting out bias and racism in ourselves and our communities as a top priority.
We share knowledge, experiences, tools, resources, templates, and most importantly, we share heart. We laugh, we cry, and (very occasionally) curse in outrage. We play games, tell stories, explore our strengths, celebrate, acknowledge greatness, and (occasionally) place fun-filled bets.
We never judge, often laugh till we can't breath, and always love one another while holding ourselves compassionately accountable to self-care as the pathway to functioning, courage over comfort as a transformative practice, pivoting from characteristics of white supremacy culture as an imperative, and rooting out bias and racism in ourselves and our communities as a top priority.
How could I have time for this?
Yes, we feel that. There is not a single leader who can join for this 90 minutes every day of the week, though many would love to. Its just not the nature of our work. We strive to make space for this time as a prioritization of self-care and investment in our businesses, communities, and personal leadership development. Yes, its an investment. In return, we have found efficiency, innovation, increased capacity and resiliency, and unexpected gains for our staff, families, students, boards, and business results. Join when you can - people join late and leave early, depending on their day.
Some join most days, some join weekly, some drop in every couple of weeks or occasionally. Every day we are here for one another*. You can put this on your calendar to block your time, or put it on and leave the time "tentative" or "available" to schedule over, if needed.
Leaders that are in the classroom at this time every day and have no one to relieve them, join on days their school is closed and on the occasion they can can get coverage. Also, one or more of us meet with them at an alternative time or on an evening or weekend to catch up and connect. If this is you, respond to this invitation and let us know when would work.
Some join most days, some join weekly, some drop in every couple of weeks or occasionally. Every day we are here for one another*. You can put this on your calendar to block your time, or put it on and leave the time "tentative" or "available" to schedule over, if needed.
Leaders that are in the classroom at this time every day and have no one to relieve them, join on days their school is closed and on the occasion they can can get coverage. Also, one or more of us meet with them at an alternative time or on an evening or weekend to catch up and connect. If this is you, respond to this invitation and let us know when would work.
What's the Latest and Where Will 21/22 Take Us?
Well, thanks to radical collaboration in 2020, we have the Pandemic-Proofing Brainstorm-Book, a handbook of considerations, solutions, and shared resources for reopening and operating during a unique time of pandemic implications for our Montessori schools. We also have the Policy Repository, including shared examples for over one hundred policy and procedure areas impacted by operating during a pandemic.
Now we take it day-by-day as onsite is reopened, enrollment grows, and innovative summer plans emerge...not to mention the ramp-up for an amazing kick-off of 21/22 school year! Daily, Hot Topics are addressed in collective. Every leader is encouraged to bring any topics that are "hot" for them, about which they would value feedback/shared experience/knowledge-sharing. This is a safe place to raise any topic facing leaders - from group assessments of the impacts of the latest government executive orders to collective suggestions for alternatives to raiding the fridge to reduce stress.
Members can find the links to join in the Leader's Hub of the Member Portal.
Those not-yet-members, please request the link below!
Well, thanks to radical collaboration in 2020, we have the Pandemic-Proofing Brainstorm-Book, a handbook of considerations, solutions, and shared resources for reopening and operating during a unique time of pandemic implications for our Montessori schools. We also have the Policy Repository, including shared examples for over one hundred policy and procedure areas impacted by operating during a pandemic.
Now we take it day-by-day as onsite is reopened, enrollment grows, and innovative summer plans emerge...not to mention the ramp-up for an amazing kick-off of 21/22 school year! Daily, Hot Topics are addressed in collective. Every leader is encouraged to bring any topics that are "hot" for them, about which they would value feedback/shared experience/knowledge-sharing. This is a safe place to raise any topic facing leaders - from group assessments of the impacts of the latest government executive orders to collective suggestions for alternatives to raiding the fridge to reduce stress.
Members can find the links to join in the Leader's Hub of the Member Portal.
Those not-yet-members, please request the link below!